U.S. Loan Requires Turkey to ‘Not Enter Northern Iraq’

Zaman ^ | 09-03-03 | Salih Boztas

[pkpjamestown]

Ankara, TURKEY, September 30, 2003 - Both American and Turkish officials have confirmed that the US$8,5 billion loan is tied to a condition that Turkish troops not enter Northern Iraq.

In a statement before the Cabinet Council meeting yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin has confirmed just that.

“The U.S. Senate determined conditions for the credit. This is one of them,” said Sahin. Minister of Justice and government spokesman Cemil Cicek also confirmed the condition in similar terms.

American officials also added their comments. A US official, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: “The condition for Turkish troops not to enter Northern Iraq was not particularly set up for this agreement. In the article Congress came up with in April, it was decided that no one sided action be taken against Northern Iraq. This decision was then reflected directly to the agreements made afterwards.”

The official also explained that anxiety over possible instability in the region due to a Turkish army operation drove the American Congress to take such a decision.

The same official, who added that Turkey had interfered in Northern Iraq many times before, said that independent Turkish action in the current climate would not solve the terrorist organization Kurdish Workers Party - Kurdistan Freedom and Democracy Congress (PKK-KADEK) problem. The official felt that “new methods were needed against KADEK”.

The official also said that this loan has nothing to do with a Turkish troop deployment to Iraq as part of the Coalition. He also added, “Because the Turkish side took things slowly, the agreement has lasted until now.”

[pkpjamestown]

This is a good one! Backshish, either way!

[pkpjamestown]

SOVEREIGNTY AND STIPULATION
BY FIKRET BILA (MILLIYET)

Columnist Fikret Bila writes on the conditions of an $8.5 billion US loan to Turkey. A summary of his column is as follows:

'Our Parliament, the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA), reconvened yesterday for its new legislative term. The TGNA is the world's first and only Parliament which led a war of independence. It is this country's supreme institution.

Right now our country is discussing the conditions of an $8.5 billion US loan to Turkey. According to the recently signed loan agreement, Turkey must cooperate with Washington in Iraq and furthermore must not unilaterally deploy troops in northern Iraq. I believe that this condition is directly related to Turkey's sovereignty.

State Minister Ali Babacan, who signed the loan deal on Turkey's behalf in Dubai, stated that the loan agreement's provisions had been reviewed by our Foreign Ministry and that no objections were raised before its signing. Asked about the issue, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that if the government had wanted to reject the deal, it could have done so.

Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Ankara said that the provision in question was added to the agreement by the US Congress in April since at that time Turkey was amassing soldiers and weapons at its Iraq border. The US officials added that the provision didn't constitute any obstacle to joint military operations but was instead aimed at preventing Turkey from making unilateral moves. Moreover, our ministers said that the agreement might be implemented with a government decision, without any parliamentary approval. Both Gul and Babacan think that the two countries might hold joint operations in northern Iraq if necessary.

However, if one country stipulates conditions limiting another country's moves in the international arena, that clearly amounts to a restriction of the latter's national sovereignty. In this case, this is indeed a political condition. If Ankara accepts this loan, that means it's making concessions to its sovereignty for the sake of $8.5 billion. This provision was written unilaterally by the US Congress, although it is linked directly to our foreign policy. Whether or not to send our troops to northern Iraq is a very important issue that must be debated by our Parliament. This provision means that Ankara is no longer able to make decisions on its own, even on issues of national security.

Sovereignty is not redeemable for money, which is why I believe our government should immediately issue the necessary response to the author of this indecent proposal.'